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Waitakere Trusts Stadium

This multi-purpose facility aligns six basketball courts within a simple 'tube' of space, simplifying the footprint and volume of the building while also allowing visual connectivity between playing surfaces.

<p>This multi-purpose facility aligns six basketball courts within a simple 'tube' of space, simplifying the footprint and volume of the building while also allowing visual connectivity between playing surfaces. </p>

The brief for the Waitakere Trusts Stadium Arena called for multi-purpose facility with six netball/basketball courts, a fully equipped gymnasium, climbing walls, conference and bar facilities, rugby club rooms, and space for sports administrators.

At the heart of the design are the netball/basketball courts aligned within a simple tube of space. This not only simplifies the building’s footprint, but also provides a strong visual connection between the interior and exterior spaces. For example, from the corporate entertainment area, spectators can either watch a centre court basketball game or enjoy an excellent view of the all-weather athletics track or the full-sized football field. This idea is carried throughout the building, allowing visitors to ‘discover’ different sports and events as they move through the vertical and horizontal circulation routes.

To ensure commercial viability, the centre also needed to be able to accommodate 5,000 spectators in both centre court and concert modes. By using a combination of fixed bleacher and retractable seating modules, maximum flexibility is provided while minimising set up times and storage space.

In keeping with the then Waitakere City Council's Better Building Code, the building incorporates an array of energy saving, water conservation, and storm water reduction measures. Solar water heating, low energy lighting systems, air-to-air heat pump heating and cooling, motorised window openers, and a low-energy air supply system which uses heat given off by the audience to drive ventilation, all reduce the building’s impact on the environment.

The Trusts Stadium Arena is also an excellent example of a sporting facility as an urban generator. Not only has it quickly become an important local landmark, it has also established itself as a social heart in West Auckland.